A garter snake sticks out its tongue after being briefly captured. They are among the most common snakes in southwest Missouri. / Mike Penprase/News-Leader

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Watch out for ticks

A tick bite that looked worse than it turned out to be prompted veteran Department of Conservation news specialist Jim Low to offer some advice on thwarting ticks during warm weather and spring turkey hunting season. Low wrote he prefers tick repellants based on the chemical compound permanon.

One application to clothing (never to skin) provides protection through several washings. DEET-based repellents work, too. Low wrote he treats his hunting clothes right before turkey season starts. More advice on dealing with ticks is available online at http://go.usa.gov/Erj. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services also has some great information at http://go.usa.gov/Err.

What about snakes?

There’s no telling if the mild winter had an effect on reptiles, Dickerson Park Zoo director and reptile specialist Mike Crocker said. He’s already seen dead snakes on roads, an indication warm weather has prompted snakes to get active. But snakes likely aren’t moving far from shelter in case there’s more cold weather, Crocker said. As temperatures rise, Crocker expects to get more calls from homeowners concerned about snakes. Many calls involve people who find garter snakes, he said. “Learn to live with garter snakes,” he said. “Garter snakes are the most common snakes in an urban area. They’re not dangerous.”

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This time of year, outdoor enthusiasts debate whether or not a mild winter has affected wildlife, ranging from ticks to deer. Area experts say determining what effect cold weather has on wildlife can be difficult. But it appears that, from the smallest creatures to the largest, most made it through winter in good shape.

Easy on some bugs, hard on others

Entomologist Rob Lawrence is the Missouri Department of Conservation’s insect expert. Deciding whether there will be a bounty of insects because winter weather wasn’t harsh can be tough. “The whole issue of insect and tick survival in the winter and predicting it is much more complex than we might think,” he said.

That’s because a very cold winter doesn’t always guarantee that insect populations will be low once warm weather begins, he said. Cold weather causes insects to go dormant, and bugs that burrow into the soil or have other protection tend to survive. “Continuous cold, in some cases, actually is better for insect survival,” Lawrence said.

A mild winter can spell trouble for some.

Insects that leave dormancy and become active during warm weather often don’t find food needed to survive, he said.

If there is an increase this year in pesky insects, there will be a corresponding increase in predatory insects, such as praying mantises, Lawrence said.

Turkeys, deer and more

Larger animals didn’t have many problems.

“Overall, most wildlife species are going to fare real well in the mild winter,” Conservation regional wildlife supervisor Tim Russell said.

Quail came through this past winter in good shape, he said.

Along with mild temperatures, there was plenty of food available for the birds.